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Catalan Fighting System will have another athlete representing their organization when Robin “The Ilonggo” Catalan goes toe-to-toe with three-time Pan-American Greco-Roman Wrestling Champion Gustavo “El Gladiador” Balart at ONE: MASTERS OF FATE on November 8 at the Mall of Asia Arena in Manila.
Catalan is excited about his matchup with Balart and has done his research on his opponent.
“In my opinion, Gustavo [Balart] is a strong athlete,” Catalan said.
“He can go the distance and can surprise his opponents with his strikes. He is also a wrestling champion who can dominate anyone on the ground. Despite the results of his past performances, I would say that he is a formidable opponent.”
Both warriors are coming off losses and are hungry for victory. Catalan suffered a knockout loss to Pongsiri Mitsatit, while Balart absorbed back-to-back losses against Chan Rothana and Tatsumitsu Wada.
To prepare for the upcoming bout, Catalan and his camp have identified weaknesses in Balart’s game they plan to exploit.
“Part of our preparations is watching the previous performances of our opponents,” Catalan said.
“He was able to hurt Tatsumitsu in his debut and gave Chan difficulties in his recent bout. We were able to point out his strengths in each match, but we also saw his weaknesses. We were able to create our strategy based on the videos, and I have to prepare and execute it well.”
“The Ilonggo” will be joining his brother, Rene “The Challenger” Catalan, who is headlining the card along with Joshua “The Passion” for the ONE Strawweight World Title. Nobody could be any happier for this opportunity for his brother than Robin himself.
“I am happy that he finally has a chance for the world title,” Catalan concluded.
“This is one of the reasons why we train so hard to showcase our skills as martial artists and also to become world champions. No matter what the result will be on the night of the event, I am still proud of his accomplishments. We will give our all on that night and, hopefully, return home victorious.”
